Mesquite Championship Rodeo draws 430 contestants for holiday special
MESQUITE, Texas – Echoing the early years of the National Finals Rodeo, the Dallas metro area is getting a big holiday helping of elite rodeo to go with its college football.
The Mesquite Championship Rodeo is staging its first year-end program Dec. 29-30 in Resistol Arena with specially discounted tickets for fans in town for the Jan. 2 Cotton Bowl game between Mississippi and Oklahoma State.
The so-called “Cotton Bowl Rodeo” on Dec. 30 has tickets priced at $10 for adults and $5 for children (12 and under). The tickets can be purchased online at www.attcottonbowl.com/fan-guide/community-events or at the arena when fans appear wearing their school colors.
Football fans will be selected from the stands to participate in Cotton Bowl themed events, including a tug-of-war between the schools.
There are 430 contestants entered in this first PRCA rodeo since the conclusion of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo on Dec. 12. Nine past or present world champions are in the field, all of them at the timed event end of the arena.
The limit on the number of rodeos that can be counted in the tie-down roping world standings jumped from 70 to 100 this year and the effect of that rule change can be clearly seen at Mesquite.
Two-time and reigning World Champion Trevor Brazile heads the field along with 2004 World Champion Monty Lewis, 2008 World Champion Stran Smith and two other cowboys who have won the Wrangler NFR average in tie-down roping – Jerome Schneeberger (2001) and Ryan Jarrett (2005, when he also won the all-around world championship).
Mickey Gee, the 1999 world champion, is in the steer wrestling competition along with 13-time Wrangler NFR qualifier Todd Suhn, Joey Bell Jr., Matt Reeves, Spud Duvall, Gabe Ledoux, Sean Mulligan, Dru Melvin and K.C. Jones.
The other world champions at Mesquite this week are team ropers Rich Skelton and Clay Tryan and barrel racers Kelly Kaminski and Mary Burger.
Brazile, the seven-time all-around world champion, is entered only in the tie-down roping at Mesquite. He will resume his team roping partnership with Patrick Smith at the Jan. 5-6 National Western Rodeo qualifier in Denver where they will compete against reigning World Champions Nick Sartain and Kollin VonAhn, Travis Tryan and Michael Jones, David Key and Skelton and one new pairing on the ProRodeo trail worth watching – two-time World Champion Header Matt Sherwood and four-time World Champion Heeler Allen Bach.
Rosser bull again voted the best at Wrangler NFR
LAS VEGAS – For the second consecutive year and third time this decade, Cotton Rosser’s Flying U Rodeo Company of Marysville, Calif., had the top bucking bull at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
Bring It edged out Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Multi-Chem Texas Cocktail and Rafter H Rodeo’s Hot Wired in a vote of the more than 50 stock contractors who had animals selected to participate in the Dec. 3-12 event in Las Vegas.
Frontier Rodeo’s Delta Ship, who Justin McDaniel rode for a Wrangler NFR record 91.5 points in 2007, was voted this year’s top bareback horse, and Painted Valley of the Harry Vold string was the best of the saddle bronc horses.
The complete list:
Bareback riding – 1. Delta Ship, Frontier Rodeo; 2. Moulin Rouge, Growney Brothers Rodeo; 3. Brother, JK Rodeo; 4. Grated Coconut, Calgary Stampede; 5. Cool Water, Andrews Rodeo.
Saddle bronc riding – 1. Painted Valley, Harry Vold Rodeo; 2. Justin’s Sock Dancer, Stace Smith Pro Rodeo; 3. Son of Sadie, Bar T Rodeo; 4. Let ’er Rip, Frontier Rodeo; 5. Eight Ball, Bar T Rodeo.
Bull riding – 1. Bring It, Flying U Rodeo; 2. Multi-Chem Texas Cocktail, Cervi Championship Rodeo; 3. Hot Wired, Rafter H Rodeo Livestock; 4. Sure Fire, D&H Cattle; 5. Vitalix Sam T Straight, Cervi Championship Rodeo.
Top rodeo journalist Michael dies of leukemia
Ground-breaking sports journalist George Michael, honored in 2007 with the PRCA award for broadcast excellence, died Dec. 24 in Washington, D.C. of complications due to chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Michael was 70.
“The George Michael Sports Machine,” was the first nationally syndicated sports show to make liberal use of highlight films, and Michael, who loved rodeo, made sure the cowboy sport was part of the package with baseball, basketball, football and hockey.
Michael may be best remembered in the Western community for his coverage of the Challenge of the Champions bull riding series in 1988, matching World Champion Lane Frost and Red Rock, a bull unridden in 309 outings.
He covered all seven rounds of the series in California, Utah and Oregon, lending it credibility with coverage on his nationally syndicated program.
Michael was sports director and sports anchor of WRC-TV, the NBC affiliate in Washington, for 27 years. His strong work ethic, larger than life personality and his belief in the power of video highlights anticipated what much of television sports reporting has become, especially as presented on ESPN’s Sportscenter.
Pendleton Round-Up legend Carden dies at age 100
Monk Carden, a rodeo clown who performed for many years at the Pendleton (Ore.) Round-Up, died on Dec. 24 at the age of 100. Carden and George Moens started a tumbling act at Pendleton High School, which eventually led to the clown act at the Round-Up, delighting fans from 1928 to 1934. He later served on the Round-Up Board and was inducted into Pendleton’s Hall of Fame in 1978.
ProRodeo at the movies
Scott Mendes, the 1997 world champion bull rider, has been cast in Gold Score, a feature film now in production and directed by Stephen Baldwin.
Bullfighter Rowdy Barry has made his movie debut this month with a credited part in Have You Heard About the Morgans, starring Hugh Grant and Sara Jessica Parker.
The Coen Brothers are doing a remake of the John Wayne film True Grit and, through Dec. 29, are holding an open casting call at the Cowboy Christmas Youth Challenge in Jackson, Miss., hoping to find a young actress to play the role of Mattie Ross.
Upcoming Events:
Dec. 29 Mesquite (Texas) Championship Rodeo, begins
Jan. 5 National Western Rodeo (qualifier), Denver, begins
Jan. 7 Dodge Texas Circuit Finals Rodeo, Waco, begins
Jan. 8 Sandhills Stock Show & Rodeo, Odessa, Texas, begins
Jan. 9 Seminole Classic PRCA Rodeo, Okeechobee, Fla.
Jan. 9 National Western Stock Show & Rodeo, Denver, begins
Jan. 10 Seminole Classic Xtreme Bulls Division I Qualifying Event, Okeechobee, Fla.
Jan. 14 Dodge First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo, Harrisburg, Pa., begins
Jan. 15 Dodge Montana Circuit Finals Rodeo, Great Falls, Mont., begins
